 | | | | Related Healthscout Videos | |
|
(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Depression is bad enough by itself. But depression coupled with insomnia is even worse.
According to researchers from the University of Rochester who looked at depression and insomnia in about 1,800 people age 60 and older, those with persistent problems falling asleep and staying asleep were significantly more likely to remain depressed than those who slept well. Patients receiving usual care for their depression were more affected by insomnia than those receiving enhanced care.
Text Continues Below
Even when depression was identified and treated in the primary care setting, the older adults in this study were more likely to remain depressed if they also exhibited persistent insomnia, study author Wilfred R. Pigeon, Ph.D., was quoted as saying. The finding that this risk was higher in the usual care group suggests that enhanced depression care may partially mitigate the perpetuating effects of insomnia on depression.
The author goes on to note that only recently have doctors recognized the role insomnia may play in depression and considered how treating it could alleviate the primary problem.
While the findings make intuitive sense, until relatively recently, insomnia was often considered a symptom that dissipated without active intervention once a primary condition like depression was treated, instead of being considered a distinct clinical entity that might affect a primary disorder, Dr. Pigeon says. What seems most likely is that insomnia is indeed simply a symptom in some cases, but clearly a disorder requiring its own treatment focus in other cases.
Sign up for a free weekly e-mail on Medical Breakthroughs called First to Know by clicking here.
SOURCE: SLEEP, published online April 1, 2008
This article was reported by Ivanhoe.com, who offers Medical Alerts by e-mail every day of the week. To subscribe, go to: http://www.ivanhoe.com/newsalert/.
|
.gif)
